Hillary Clinton tacks left heading into Democratic primary debate

Secretary Hillary Clinton attends the Why Women's Economic Security Matters For All panel discussion at The Center For American Progress on September 18, 2014. (Paul Morigi/WireImage)

Hillary Clinton is tacking left as she heads into the first Democratic debate - and what could be the most crucial period of the primary campaign.

Clinton is set to meet Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and a trio of other lesser-known rivals onstage in Las Vegas on Tuesday night, the first time she'll directly tangle with them since the campaign began.

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The debate kicks off a crucial two-week stretch. Nine days later, she'll be on Capitol Hill sparring with the House Benghazi Committee. How she handles the pair of high-profile events could have an impact on Vice President Biden's long-awaited decision on whether to run for president, a decision most expect in the next week.

Clinton's allies acknowledge how important the stretch is.

"It's a pivotal moment," said one longtime Clinton ally.

Clinton's team knows this is their best chance to reintroduce her after a rocky summer, where most public attention focused on her use of a private email and drowned out her campaign messages. They think once voters see the candidate and hear what she stands for, her numbers will improve.

"For millions of people watching the debate this is going to be the first time they really hear what she's fighting for and who she's fighting for," Clinton spokeswoman Christina Reynolds said.

Democratic Presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., poses for a portrait before an interview with The Associated Press in Washington. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

As she's prepared for the crucial first debate, Clinton has looked to take the wind out of Sanders' progressive sails and find ways to contrast herself with Biden, who her team increasingly expects will run.

Sanders has consistently led Clinton in polling of early-voting New Hampshire, and has been within striking distance of the front-runner in other recent national and early-state polls.

In just the past week, Clinton sided with unions (and Sanders) against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a massive trade deal, while unveiling new proposals to tighten Wall Street regulations and send bad actors to jail, a move aimed at connecting with the populist anti-Wall Street crowd that's been powering Sanders' surge.

Former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley speaks at "Politics & Eggs" at the Bedford Village Inn March 31, 2015 in Bedford, New Hampshire. (Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

And as Clinton has laid out a progressive agenda on a number of issues, she's been more willing to draw distinctions with Biden and Sanders.

Her heavy emphasis on gun safety last week following the Oregon massacre sets up a strong contrast with Sanders, who has a mixed record on gun control. Her trade stance separates her from Biden and President Obama, as does her call for a no-fly zone in Syria.

She's also taken aim at Sanders' tuition-free college plan for being too expensive and letting rich families off the hook, saying last week that she's not in favor "of making college free for Donald Trump's kids."

"She's really telegraphing to Bernie that she's going to talk about putting a price tag on policy proposals and not let this utopian 'free college for everyone' go," said a Democrat close to the Clinton campaign. "I hope that there's a lot of discussion on guns."

She also recently announced her opposition to the Keystone XL oil pipeline, siding with environmentalists after months of delaying as she waited for the Obama Administration to take a position.

Clinton and Sanders have gone out of their way to avoid attacking each other, rarely mentioning the other by name.

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Lincoln Chafee visits FOX Business Network at FOX Studios on September 30, 2015 in New York City. (Rob Kim/Getty Images)

Strategists aligned with both candidates expect them to stay civil and focus on the issues, seeing no advantage in going negative.

Sanders said on "Meet The Press" Sunday that he wants to talk about his "record of standing up for working families and the middle class and being prepared to take on virtually every aspect of corporate America," taking aim at big moneyed interests rather than Clinton as he has from day one.

And Clinton's advisers say attacking Sanders directly could backfire as she looks to woo the left-wing activists who've flocked to him.

While the front-runners may stay civil, real haymakers might come from the lesser-known trio of candidates onstage with Sanders and Clinton. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley has been especially critical of Clinton in recent weeks, telegraphing that he'll look to draw blood as he tries to breathe life into his struggling campaign.

Former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee and former Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) also need to do something, anything, to gain attention - and as Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) have demonstrated in the early GOP debates, desperate candidates are the ones most likely to lash out.

"She'll be ready and deal with the attacks. I don't think that's going to drive the debate," said Reynolds.

Clinton has been hard at work in debate prep for weeks. Former Biden aide Ron Klain and longtime Clinton adviser Karen Dunn, Huma Abedin's attorney, are running the show.

Clinton's longtime lawyer Robert Barnett is playing Sanders in mock debates, while top policy adviser Jake Sullivan is playing O'Malley.

She has no public events scheduled all weekend, a sign she'll be hunkered down in debate prep for the next few days.

But some Clinton allies hope she's not over-preparing.

"She needs to appear not overly scripted and she needs to convey her command of the issues in a way that isn't exhausting or suffocating," said one longtime Clinton ally, warning that she can't "appear too scripted and rehearsed and debate-prepped within an inch of her life."